


Spider Twins

by Lady_Rubik



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Age Regression/De-Aging, As In They Don't Throw Hissy Fits, Edited Sokovia Accords and Everything is Great, F/M, Gen, How Do I Tag, M/M, Minor Steve Rogers/Tony Stark, Natasha Romanov Feels, Natasha Romanov Has Issues, Natasha Romanov Needs a Hug, Not Captain America: Civil War (Movie) Compliant, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Precious Peter Parker, Protective Tony Stark, SHIELD still exists, Spider Babies, Steve Rogers & Natasha Romanov Friendship, Steve Rogers & Tony Stark Friendship, Tony Stark Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure, Very very minor, Villains Effin It Up, Whump, mental age regression
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-08
Updated: 2021-03-05
Packaged: 2021-03-09 03:00:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 9,252
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27457624
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lady_Rubik/pseuds/Lady_Rubik
Summary: "Miss Romanoff! Look out!"Steve turns just in time to see Peter shield Natasha's body with his own and a beam of light hits them both with Peter taking most of the heat. It's enough to throw them back into a brick wall and they both fall onto the ground. It's enough to send Steve sprinting towards them while looking around for where the beam came from. It's enough for him to panic."What were you thinking?!" Natasha yells out through a pinched tone, holding her side as she rolls off of Peter. "You don't just jump in front of unknown alien beams!""Well, you were gonna get hit and I have super healing so I have better chances of surviving the full hit. And what if I grow wings?!" Peter replies, quickly bouncing up even if Steve can see he's obviously hurt. And he also doesn't need to directly see Tony to know the billionaire is growing grey hairs already from just hearing it over the comms.
Relationships: James "Bucky" Barnes/Steve Rogers, Pepper Potts/Tony Stark, Peter Parker & Natasha Romanov, Peter Parker & Tony Stark, Steve Rogers & Natasha Romanov
Comments: 10
Kudos: 116





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This idea literally came to me while I was sitting in my bed for an hour straight doing nothing but hiding under my covers procrastinating. Uh, so I wouldn't say this is age play necessarily but mental age play??? If that makes sense??? I don't know. All I've been doing for the past four days is skipping class, eating hot chip, charge phone, and lie.

The day started normally. Or somewhat normally. However normal it could be with a declared “mad scientist” villain attacking in Orlando, Florida of all places. No, Disneyland of all places. 

He began by destroying all the rides and stores, dousing them with an unknown gas that caused them to instantly rust or disintegrate. That would sure scar some children after seeing Mickey Mouse crumble to literal pieces in front of them. 

SWAT had responded first until it was determined it was an Avengers level threat when it was revealed the “mad scientist” had some level of magic on his side for protection. Because of course, it was everything but a normal Tuesday afternoon. 

Steve steps over the broken part of the teacup ride, surveying the damage to a once magical ride. He has never personally been but knows how the experience can be for everyone else. 

“Think he had a motive?” 

The blond looks over to Sam kicking a rusted wheel out of his path before coming to stand next to him. He shrugs in response. “If he did, there’s no telling if he accomplished it or not.”

“The man bought a ticket months ahead, came in and rode only one ride before he somehow summoned his tech to him from the outside and began attacking.” 

“Which one did he attack first?”

“It’s A Small Word, the one with the creepy puppets.”

Steve places his shield onto his back, fully turning to Sam and brushing some dust out of his hair. He didn’t know that ride and would have to look it up later. “Any casualties?” He prayed there would be none, but from the pinch in Sam’s face knows that it would go unanswered. 

“Six. Four kids, two adults and all unrelated. There’s suspected to be more but they have to be careful with the collapsed rides already. Wanda and Vision are currently over there scoping out.” Sam lists off, cracking his knuckles and sighing. Steve instantly feels a wave of worry overcome him.

“Will she be okay?” He asks, looking over to where most of the smoke lifts into the sky. 

“She volunteered so I think she knows what she’s getting into.”

Steve still couldn’t help but to worry. Sam begins walking forward, and he does follow but a bit slower. “How’s Nat and Queens?”

“Kid is currently being chewed out by none other than and Nat is being checked out by med. Looks to be nothing too serious but bruises from the fall.” 

Steve nods even if Sam couldn’t see it with his back turned as they begin to walk towards the front of the park. Indeed, Steve can see a sheepish looking Spiderman sitting on the edge of a fountain with Tony out of his suit, looking enraged.

“Mr. Stark, I’m fine-”

“No! No! Did you see what the guy could do?! Turn multi-million dollar buildings to rust in seconds. Seconds, kid! What if he had hit you with that, then what? Want me to sit by and idly watch as you crumbled to dust and I couldn’t do jack shit?!” 

Peter hunches in on himself, and Steve can’t see any nearby people that would witness Spiderman being chided by Iron Man like a child. As Steve and Sam approach, Tony turns his head to look at them and releases a frustrated sigh. Even if it wasn’t his place, Steve can’t help but feel bad on both accounts. 

“He had his heart in a good place, Tony. He didn’t want Natasha to take the blunt of it.” Steve tries defending Peter. But the billionaire’s anger is now just redirected to Steve. 

“Natasha is a grown ass woman who is a spy slash assassin that can move her own ass if she wanted. Hell, he could web her away if he wanted!” Tony fumes, pointing at Peter, who visibly flinches even if he tries to hide it. 

Sam holds up a hand, not wanting a repeat of what happens literally everyday between the two. “Okay, tin can, no need to blow a fuse. What happened happened; we learn and move on.” 

And it semi works, because Tony only clenches his jaw before inhaling through his nose sharply and releasing an even deeper sigh. “Friday, bringing another suit. Let’s see how much damage is done to this place and what can be salvaged.” And he turns away, pointedly ignoring all three of them.

Steve sits next to Peter on the edge, making sure that his arm was in his line of sight before placing a hand on Pete’s shoulder. “It’s alright, kid. I would’ve done the same thing.”

Sam pipes up, “That much is true.”

And he receives a small glare as Peter finally speaks, pulling his legs up to further curl in on himself. “I don’t want him to be mad at me.” He says quietly, almost going missed by Steve’s super hearing. 

“He’s not. It’s Tony; He’ll be upset for some while but he still loves you and cares for you.” 

“Miss Romanoff ‘sprobably mad at me too.” Peter continues, before readjusting his position to bury his face into his hands. “She yelled at me for being reckless, which is, like, the most she’s talked to me so far.” 

Steve looks up at Sam, who gives his own concerned look back but doesn’t say anything. Ever since Tony very reluctantly allowed Peter to be an Avenger, everyone has welcomed him with open arms except Natasha. However, she already has naturally untrusting but it’s been a few weeks already. Steve hadn’t looked into it, but had made sure Peter knew Nat was always suspicious of someone new regardless. It wasn’t just him. 

The super soldier wraps his arm around the boy, giving a side hug just as Sam claps his hands together. “Don’t worry, kid. When we get back to the compound, I’m sure Super Smash Bros will cheer you up. It’s all good - you did good.”

While Peter’s mask showed no expression beside the eyes, Steve could feel the kid’s energy picking up a bit more, leaning into Steve before they both stood. 

“Is there anything I can do to help clean up?” Peter asks, wringing his hands together nervously. 

“Probably not, we were instructed not to touch anything possibly contaminated until it can be examined.” Sam informs, just as Steve gives him a confused look. 

“No clean up?”

“Off limits. Even for first responders. Only SHIELD Intel as of right now and those trying to help rescue efforts. Wanda is cleared because she can lift things without touching them and Vision has his creepy going through walls shit.” 

Steve presses his lips together in a disapproving frown before Sam rushes to finish. “Oh, my bad. Stuff.”

“Sam…”

“Gotta watch my potty mouth. My apologies, Captain.”

With that, he chuckles and walks off as the blond sighs and looks around at the damaged theme park that once held wonders for children. Steve didn’t know why this man would do such a thing, but hoped he was found and brought to justice swiftly for those six innocent lives. Maybe even more. 

He begins towards the quinjet he arrived on just outside the park, hearing Peter trail behind him like a lost puppy. But he’ll allow it. Kid has seen a lot. 

It’s silent as they reach the quinjet, sliding in swiftly. Steve immediately closes the door after Peter to give the kid some privacy. The teen pulls off his mask, seating himself in one of the jet’s seats. “How will SHIELD find the guy?” 

“Not sure. I think Fury put Bucky and Loki on that part.” Steve answers, sitting in the pilot seat and bringing up some new holograms on the windshield. “Even so, he can’t be far. We got a clear shot of his face on cameras leading up to the incident. Bucky can go off that alone - and if it’s some magic illusion that’s where Loki comes in. He won’t get far.”

Steve pulls up footage of the man going through security and passing into the park. He acted pretty normally, even taking pictures at the front and getting some cotton candy and a pair of headbands. Further footage revealed that indeed the only ride he went on was “It’s a Small World”, as Sam called it. The man went in, looking solemn and came out with his expression clouded and blank - even darkened. 

‘Natasha Romanoff is approaching the craft.’ Friday speaks, just as the cargo door opens for Natasha to step on.

“That went nicely,” She greets, looking at both Steve and Peter, who ducks his head in embarrassment. 

“Could’ve gone a bit more nicer if you ask me,” Steve retorts as Nat sits in the copilot seat, spinning around a bit and reclining back. It’s only when she spots the footage Steve is watching that she sits back up and watches along. Silence bounces on the walls of the Quinjet except for occasional little beeps and Steve can feel the rising tension between both Spider themed heroes. 

It’s silent a bit more before all of their comms buzz for a second, and Fury’s voice is heard. 

“Damage is now considered toxic to touch and breathe in. No one is permitted on site. We’re bringing in hazmat suits and need to get rid of the chemical waste emitting fumes. When I say no one on site, I mean it. That includes you, Stark. We can’t risk anymore casualties or secondhand injuries. Get cleared through medical and head back to New York - effective immediately. We’ll debrief tomorrow.” 

Steve removes his gloves and shield, standing and taking them over a basket bolted into the wall. They would probably need to be cleaned along with his suit, but he’d take that off back at the Compound. The serum could hold him over until then. “Did you guys get cleared?”

“Yep. Thoroughly, I may add.” Natasha answers, absentmindedly spinning in the chair once more. Steve raises an eyebrow at that, but tries not to think too much about it. “They think that the beam from earlier was just for show.”

Steve nods, and looks over to Peter, who looks so desperate to flee from the situation that Steve wants to grab the boy and wrap him in a blanket burrito. 

“But...it could’ve been worse. Thank you, Peter.” Natasha adds, shocking both Peter and Steve. She’s still looking up at the ceiling, slowly spinning in her seat, but it felt...genuine. 

Peter snaps up, rushing to say, “Oh- oh yeah! Of course, no problem!”

They all fall into silence, awaiting the others to enter as Steve sits back in the pilot seat and starts up the quinjet. At least he could enjoy a bit of normalcy the rest of the day.

*  
Steve spoke too god damn soon.

He’s sketching on the couch with Bucky sitting right next to him. The brunette’s flesh arm is thrown over his shoulders as he spoke with Thor on a recliner. Steve wasn’t listening in on the conversation as he tuned in at some points then tuned out the rest - too much to catch up. Clint and Sam were currently at a pool table some ways off, and Wanda was in her own room, not wanting to be out at the moment. Steve couldn’t blame her. The rest, he didn’t exactly know.

The count jumped from 6 to 37. And still rising.

The incident was five hours earlier and things have semi calmed down. The media was up in flames at the government for not allowing the Avengers on scene sooner, so Steve is somewhat grateful the heat isn’t directly on them at the moment. It’s somewhat sick of him to think but after the near fallout of the Avengers - they couldn’t afford anymore bad rep at the moment.

The elevator dings, and off walks Pepper, Tony and Peter trailing behind them.

“-all I’m saying is that Pirate doesn’t know what exactly we’re dealing with and that’s fine! But SHIELD will take way too long to examine it. Bruce and I would be way faster-”

“Tony, what part of “hazardous” do you not understand?” Pepper cuts off, and Steve knows they can’t see him but still tries to keep his smile down. “Bringing it into the Compound is not ideal. It’s best to just leave alone until otherwise, or you know, just follow orders?”

“That’s boring. Who just wants to follow orders? We don’t know what kind of chemical or element we’re dealing with here. Not like it’s borderline radiation.”

Steve looks up just to say Pepper and Tony walk into the kitchen, but Peter behind them looks absolutely lost. His eyes were glazed over and his skin was rosier than usual. 

“Hey, Queens?” Steve calls out. It grabs the attention of both Peter and Tony who only looked to see who was calling Peter before turning back to Pepper. The blond motions Peter to him. “Need your opinion on something real quick.”

The spider mutant blinks owlishly before walking over to the couch and just...standing there. He’s also quieter than usual and if that doesn’t set off alarms. How has no one yet noticed this??

Steve reaches up to gently tug Peter down onto the couch when he realizes the boy wouldn’t do it himself, then speaks low enough for Peter to catch. “How are you feeling?” Peter looks at Steve for quite some time, thinking about the question before nodding very pronounced where his curls bounce on his head. 

“I had a nap earlier,” Peter answers, but his tone is off. It makes sense for just waking up, but Steve didn’t know Peter even took naps. “Iron Man jus’ woke me up.” But then again he could be tired from the earlier battle. It was possible. 

Yet Steve wasn’t fully convinced. No, he wasn’t convinced at all. 

Peter looked...vulnerable, here. His eyes were definitely glossed over but not in any mindless haze, but one Steve sees in...in children. Granted Peter’s a child, but not that young. 

“Iron Man over there?” Steve asks, pointing over at Tony in the kitchen. Peter nods enthusiastically again. 

“Yeah! It was cool. You wanted my opinion on something?”

Steve blinks. Then blinks slower this time, narrowing his eyes at the boy. Maybe he was being paranoid but something in him said “this is not normal”. 

“No, Queens, I changed my mind about it.” Steve says, to which Peter merely shrugs and immediately bounces back up to walk back over to Tony’s side. Not unusual, but his overall demeanor is off. The blond does not like the way things are looking. 

So he stands, setting the sketchbook down in his spot. “I’ll be back. Gotta find Nat,” He answers to Bucky’s questioning look, but doesn’t answer anything more than that, hurrying towards the elevator. If anything she was on her private floor, but Steve would need that to soothe his nerves better than a teenager. At least he could tell what was Nat’s normal behavior or not. 

He just hopes to god they don’t have even more trouble on their hands.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The first drop happens unexpectedly. Steve can’t help but tell himself and everyone “I told you so.” Mentally though.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! I literally did not expect this story to get 200 reads in about a day when I first posted it? It was literally so half-assessed and it was in my drafts for a month that I looked at it and didn't want it to go to waste and just said "Well, fuck it" and hit post.
> 
> Yes, this is late. It’s hard to scrap up motivation sometimes so you gotta say like earlier: fuck it, and post. 
> 
> This is not sexual age play, or will never be. Yes, I wanted a mental deage fic I don’t know why. But it will make sense later. I’m tired it’s 1 am. Unbetad so if you see a mistake, kindly let me know LOL. Enjoy!!

Steve didn’t know what to expect. 

As he neared Natasha’s room, he’s hoping and praying that everything was fine. Sure, nothing alarming could’ve happened to her without the rest of the Tower being alerted, but knowing Nat, she would’ve kept it hidden for the longest time. 

There was the time that she’s gotten injuries no one would have known she had if not for Friday - but even then, Natasha wouldn’t even be in the tower had it not been for Tony’s promise to never have Friday breach her privacy unless it was life threatening and could not think clearly to give consent. The redhead could get shot in the leg and no one would know if she dressed the wound properly and just went about her day. It’s happened before.

The only person who’s been able to call her out for it so far is Loki, only because he is the god of lies. And it was only one time because she’s so evasive of him if need be. She didn’t open up to strangers, of course, and Clint was really the one who she trusted with her life. Steve was kind of proud of himself for being a close second now. 

Peter is kind of like that, but under pressure, he liked to talk. However, much like his mentor father figure, he too was evasive about stuff about his well being, saying that it was “fine” and he could handle it. Newsflash, 50% of the time he could not. Natasha was more skilled about it, but Peter was more persistent about it. But Steve didn’t stop without a fight and he would make sure his family was okay.

So there’s only one way to find out.

Knocking on the assassin’s closed door, Steve calls out. “Nat? I know you heard me coming, but I just wanted to see how you were feeling.” 

Silence answers him, and not even his enhanced hearing can pick up the faintest sounds of movement. She could be sleeping, a rational voice says inside of him. There would be no reason to interrupt her if she’s sleeping then. He gives it a few more seconds before knocking once more. “Natasha?” He tries again, louder this time. 

It accomplishes something, because there’s the sound of rustling and some movement, just before it stops. Steve isn’t trying to think the worst. If anything were to happen to Peter, his enhanced healing could take care of it, but Natasha was a human and she-

The door unlocks and whizzes open, with Natasha on the other side, a small strain present in her neck. Her face is normal and relaxed, but Steve can tell it’s her “just woken up” mask. 

“Is someone in danger?” Natasha asks first, but from the looks of it, Steve knows she knows the answer. So she’s pissed. 

“No, I just-”

“I’m fine. I was resting, Steve.”

Napping? Natasha hardly napped, especially in broad daylight still. Too much of a risk for her. But even still, she’s a light sleeper and must’ve heard Steve the first time. Is she that exhausted? It must show on Steve’s face, because the spy sighs and leans her head on the doorframe. “Yes, Steve, I was  _ resting.  _ I do that after missions. I’ve  _ been  _ doing it. Has that slipped your notice until now?”

“But it’s not like you to just sleep like that.”

“Sleep? No, I just went down for a nap and told Friday to not have anyone bother me for 15 minutes.” 

Steve feels the frown deepen on his face. Well, there’s why Friday didn’t stop him. “Natasha, it’s...it’s been a few hours.” He informs her. 

The disbelief, the shock, runs across Natasha’s face like a shadow. It’s only there for a second, and she searches Steve’s face for a lie, a hint of confusion trickling in and out of expression. However, he would need no reason to lie about it. 

In that one second of hesitation, her green eyes misting over. Confused and lost. Just like Steve had seen with Peter. 

Steve doesn’t understand. Earlier, she said the beam might’ve just been for show but he didn’t think so. It had done something - it was  _ doing  _ something. “Nat?” He asks, softer this time. Her expression was open and the most vulnerable that Steve has ever seen her. It was scary. Maybe he could get Tony to look at both her and Peter. 

The spy doesn’t respond to her name, looking off before blinking a few seconds later, green eyes coming into focus and looking back at Steve. Her spine is straightened, face guarded once more. “You’re still here?” 

“What-”

“I said I’m fine. Is there anything else you wanted to tell me?”

The blond blinks in confusion, pressing his lips into a thin line and then shaking his head. “No, just...wanted to check on you so you can go back to your nap. Make sure you didn’t spontaneously combust or something.” He half jokes. 

Nat quirks a hint of a smile, shifting her weight back and closing the door. It leaves the super soldier there, reeling over the past few minutes. Backing away, Steve heads for the stairs once more - making sure that he was out of earshot for Natasha to snoop. “Friday, did you get that?”

‘I always do, Captain.’

“Can you check her vitals?” 

‘Within Miss Romanoff’s privacy protocols in place, all I can reveal to you is that her signs are within the range of normal.’

Makes sense. Nat is all about privacy. If anything, Steve could only take her word for it. He could only wait for something to happen, but what if it was too late by then? The man had been able to rust buildings in seconds - what if their organs are failing? “And Peter?” 

‘Mr. Parker is also showing normal vitals as well, albeit 0.28% slower heart rate than average. Would you like me to alert boss of your potential concern?’

Steve shakes his head, knowing Friday can see it through her cameras. “No need. Nothing to cause panic over. I’m just overreacting. That’s it.” He’s fine and he would get over it. 

*

  
  


“You’re moping.”

“What?” Steve looks up from his sketchbook and towards his lover. 

Bucky pulls off his shirt but keeps his sweatpants, tossing it onto the floor and sliding into the bed next to Steve. “You’re moping. Pouting. Sulking. Brooding-”

Steve defends, “I’m not doing any of that.” But at Bucky’s knowing look, even Steve realizes it sounds like utter bullshit. “Stop that, I’m just..thinking.” He twirls the pencil in his hand and when Bucky cranes his neck to look at the drawing, Steve looks too, noticing the familiar face of Natasha looking back at him. It started out as a drawing of a woman he saw in a coffee shop, but somehow had transformed without him thinking about it.

Bucky snorts, and Steve glares at him before the brunet can say anything else. Sighing in defeat and closing the sketchbook, Steve places both items on the nightstand, slithering under the blanket to wiggle himself into Bucky’s hold. “I’m just worried about her.”

“Hm.”

Even with Bucky’s half interested hum, Steve continues. “Worried about them both, actually. Peter and Nat. I’ve never seen them look like that. It was too trance-like, like a lost feeling. Both cloudy gazes and not like them at all. Maybe what they were hit with is a slow working poison, or can change their biology. It’s more science than magic related, but Bruce did say it’s remnants have traces of magic intertwined with chemistry. Even if it wasn’t the case, Peter’s healing could probably last him longer than Natasha.”

“He took the brunt of the hit, if not all of it.” Bucky reminds Steve. “If anything, the kid should be the one getting checked out.” 

“Friday said he was fine and Tony isn’t panicking or anything. Both of them are fine. But I know what I saw.”

Bucky hums again, adjusting his position and burying his face into Steve’s neck. The blond knew Bucky wasn’t tired, as his sleeping schedule was still messed up, but he liked to relax in silence sometimes. “I believe you, doll.” 

“You’re just saying that.” Steve says, sighing.

Bucky’s face twists into a funny expression. “Ouch. I do believe you, when have I not? Unless it’s a stupid idea, I’ll always be by your side on things.” And that was very much true, Steve knew. Even at the chuckle of his lover, Steve could just hear Sam calling him a “mother hen”.

“I can see your pout without looking up.” 

It’s Steve’s turn to chuckle now. With that, the sniper looks up, capturing Steve’s blue eyes with his own. The brunet continues. “But I do believe you and your intuition. However, I saw Peter at dinner. He was his ever hyper self, and I didn’t notice anything abnormal. I’m not saying you’re wrong, but i understand your need to make sure everything’s okay.” 

if Bucky, the ever perceptive person, didn’t notice anything, then maybe Steve really was overlooking it. He trusted his other half’s judgement and knew it was better to just wait for the first obvious sign. Steve was just overthinking it. If only he could convince his instinct that. But instinct was never wrong, so what the fuck was it?

“Doll?” Bucky nudges the blond, bringing him back down to Earth. Steve looks back at Bucky, giving the other a masked smile. 

“It’s fine, I’ll just check with them in the morning to calm my nerves.”

He doesn’t want to continue the conversation, because then he wouldn’t be able to sleep. It was better to just sleep on it and check on them in the morning. The super soldier reaches over to turn off the lamp, once more cuddling into Bucky’s hold. He can tell the other knows about his dissatisfaction, but didn’t want to further talk about it. 

It was fine for now. Friday says it’s fine, Bucky says it’s fine, hell even Steve is telling himself that it’s fine now. So there’s no reason to continue to think about it. 

With the warmth of Bucky and the occasional small whir of his arm, a light sleep falls over Steve. It could wait till the morning.

  
  


And apparently, it couldn’t wait until the morning.

Steve really needed to stop internally jinxing himself.

He slowly wakes up after what feels like five minutes later, rolling over and disconnecting himself from Bucky’s koala hold. The clock on the nightstand reads two in the morning, bright against the dark background of his room. Steve didn’t randomly wake up like that frequently, only one some nights. However, he felt groggy and tired, sinking into the bed as if sleep were dragging him back under again. 

‘Captain Rogers,’ comes Friday’s quiet call. It definitely gets his attention from falling back asleep again. ‘Captain Rogers, Mr. Parker is currently in distress.’ Friday says, causing the blond to immediately sit up. 

“Distress-” He repeats, but his mission mode is already kicked on, throwing the sheets off and rushing to the door. Of course, Bucky is shooting up from the commotion, awoken by the motion if not from Friday’s voice. 

“Steve, what-”

“Check on Natasha, I’m getting Peter.” Is all Steve says, all hints of sleepiness leaving his body as he rushes out of the room. Even with Friday turning on the dim floor lights, Steve knew where to go - he didn’t need the lights. 

And he’s thinking the worst things. There was no way that he woke up by coincidence. For how long had Peter been in distress? What kind of distress? Was he dying? Steve can’t help but think the worst about their youngest teammate, heading a beeline straight for Peter’s room. The teen didn’t often spend the night in the Tower during school season, but stayed throughout weekends and after missions. 

He doesn’t need to go to the door however, because out in the hallway is the teen in question, a blanket wrapped around his being and dragging behind him on the floor. Peter’s face is streaked with tears, and he’s trembling terribly.

“Peter?” Steve asks, stepping forward and holding his hands up. The boy looked lost, as if he didn’t know what he was doing in the Tower. 

Except the spider mutant only blinks and trembles impossibly more at Steve approaching, at which the super soldier gets the hint, pausing in his steps. “Okay, I won’t approach you.” Panic attacks were common in the Tower, even more so with Tony and Bucky who both dealt with bad PTSD. Steve has never experienced Peter having one in the time he’s been on the team, however. 

Steve slightly looks up to the ceiling. “Friday, where's Tony?”

The A.I smoothly answers, ‘Boss has muted me since 12 A.M. I cannot override the mute command.’ 

Concerning Peter, Tony would quite literally do anything for the boy so the fact Steve is here right now instead of him? “Do you think Bruce can get him if he’s awake? Or Bucky?” Except now he’s brought back to reality with the very much bawling teen hero in front of him. Friday doesn’t respond, but at Peter’s face it’s probably better if she didn’t. The kid is  _ spooked.  _

“Okay,” Steve tries to rack his head for ideas, watching Peter. “Queens? It’s me, Steve. Steve Rogers. Do you know who you are?” 

Peter gives a timid nod. 

“Can you give me your name?”

Peter thinks for a second before furiously shaking his head. “No talk to strangers.” 

If that wasn’t a red flag, then Steve didn’t know what was. His voice was high pitched. Sure, Peter’s voice was not deep but it wasn’t  _ that  _ high either… “Do-“ He shakes his head, clearing the confusion and speaking with a bit more clarity. “Do you know where you are?” 

Peter’s face scrunches as he visibly thinks, looking around the hallway and wiggling his toes on the floor. After assessing his surroundings, Peter looks back at Steve and shakes his head. However, Peter hiccups and then gives the blond a sheepish look. “Cap’n ‘Merica.” 

Silence falls upon the hallway, minus Peter’s little sniffles until Steve breaks it. 

“Yeah...let’s- yeah, let’s go with that.” 

“Want mama and daddy.” 

Now Steve clearly knows something is wrong, but doesn’t respond to that. “Okay, Peter. Do you wanna-“ Steve didn’t frequently curse, but he felt one curling up his neck. And a headache. “Do you want to go see the shield? We can go look at the shield while we wait for your Aunt May to come get you.” 

“No!” Peter protests, looking on the verge of tears and Steve rushes to pacify him, raising his hands and giving a slight shushing. 

“Hey, it’s okay. I’m sorry. We’ll stay here. Stranger danger. Got it.” 

Sighing with exhaustion, Steve walks over to the wall and sits down to rest with his back to it. He wouldn’t approach Peter, but still keep him supervised until someone else came to help him. And surprisingly enough, he doesn’t have to approach Peter because the teen is doing that himself. 

He quite literally gets down and crawls over to Steve, small sobs and hiccups escaping his lips as he presses himself into the super soldier. And they sit there for a couple minutes, Steve awkwardly comforting him with irregular pats on the back. Peter quite literally calms down in his embrace, and even his shivers subside a bit. 

Steve counts it as a silent win. 

Until Tony comes barreling up the stairs with Natasha and Bucky in tow. 

“What the fuck happened!?”

It startles Peter, of course it does, who screams at the new people and presses himself into Steve even more, trying to get away from them. 

“Don’t come any closer!” Steve urges, turning Peter away from their view. It deterres Nat and Bucky, who stop in their tracks, but Stark keeps walking, a concerned and confused face evident on his face. “I mean it, Stark! Stop it! He’s not- he’s not in a right headspace.”

That's what seems to get the engineer to stop, pausing and forming words but not speaking. “What the fuck is that supposed to mean?!”

“Shush!” 

“This is not the time for a fucking language lecture, you nun, let me see the kid!” 

Bucky is the one to step forward, careful eyes still on the shielded figure of Peter. His voice is calmer, as if trying to tell Tony without telling Tony that he needed to calm down. “Tony, Friday woke us up because he was in distress.” 

“And I wasn’t notified because??”

“You muted her.” Steve reminds him, standing to full height. Or at least trying to, because Peter had panicked and gripped his shirt as if Steve would disappear into thin air. It’s only then do all the eyes in the hall drop down to the compromised teen now he’s in full view. And for some reason, Steve doesn’t like that they’re just  _ staring _ . 

So he just reaches down and swipes Peter up. The kid is actually pretty light for being what- 15 almost 16? Still, it was nothing and Peter actually seemed to sink into the embrace, hiding his tear streaked face into Steve’s chest. “Are you done yelling?” He asks Tony, whose eye twitches. With either annoyance or confusion, Steve didn’t know. 

“Okay, bring him to medbay. Nat, you’re coming too, because whatever that is,” Tony motions a hand over to Peter and Steve, who holds back a frown. “I’m sure is related to earlier. Better grab the coffees!” And he turns on his heel, turning away. “Robocop, you can come too, just to be there for your mother hen. Friday, tell Brucie to get out of his hidey hole, we need his smarts.” 

There had been weirder nights within the Tower. Steve can’t count how many times he’s woken up and just walked around the Tower to stumble into someone who then goes “I can explain”. At that point, Steve would just actively ignore it. 

Bucky catches Steve’s eyes for a second, silently communicating with him in only a way they could. Asking if he was okay, Steve reassuring he was albeit just as confused and concerned as everyone else. Natasha clears her throat, breaking the silence once more. 

“I’ll be,” She stops, eyeing Peter suspiciously. “Downstairs.” And she leaves without another word, another glance. And maybe Steve was just seeing it, but she looked-. No, Natasha never hesitated. Natasha Romanoff? Never. 

Except Bucky presses his lips together in thought. “She seemed fine to me when I woke her up. Maybe even annoyed.” 

“It’s better to be safe than sorry...Do you think she-“ 

“Natalia? Unlikely. If anything, I’d think she’d rather ghost us all then allow herself to be in such a position. I’ll be in the gym.” Bucky says, looking at Peter once more. “Keep me updated.” But he can’t approach Steve without setting the teen off, so settles for an air kiss, turning to the stairs to descend them. 

And when it’s just them, Steve knows he’s going to have to move Peter downstairs, he feels like this was going to be more complicated than it seemed. Everything always was. 

“Who dat?” Peter asks up at Steve, glossy brown eyes holding unshed tears. 

“Uh, other heroes… Do you wanna go see some suits while we wait for your-“ Steve cringes. “your aunt?”

“My mommy and daddy?”

“They’re, they uh….yeah, they’re on vacation right now so it’s just you and Captain America.” God, he hoped he wasn’t screwing something up. “How old are you, kid?” 

That seems to stump Peter, who brings one hand to his face to count his fingers before proudly showing four digits. “This many!” 

Steve has definitely been through weirder nights. The Tower was full of surprises, so maybe this shouldn’t have shocked him so much but still. 

God fucking damnit. 


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things get mixed together like wet paint to make a mushy brown.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How did my story jump from 600 hits to 1000 in like two days?? What?! Where are you people coming from! Hi! Thank you for reading so far.
> 
> Uh, original this story was probably the lowest priority for updates I will admit. I was not expecting this much support. Love you all!
> 
> Comments and kudos are very much appreciated! Even if I don’t respond, I do love to read them and worship them. Whoo! Hope you guys enjoy :)
> 
> Sorry - I had to repost this bc I messed something up . Oops

So maybe this was how new parents felt with new kids because this was exhausting. 

It’s five am. Or it was when Steve last checked with Friday. Everyone’s tired, and one quick glance around the room shows Tony hunched over a table, Natasha near sleep curled in a chair, and Bruce looking dead on his feet right next to Tony but somewhat still alert. Bucky had come down for a while, but decided to leave because Peter was extremely stressed out with the amount of people in the room, and with the remaining Avengers sticking around, it didn’t ease the stranger danger Peter suffered. 

Boy, the kid could scream. 

He wouldn’t let anyone get near him at all. Only Steve was allowed to be near him, and Steve himself is pretty sure Tony has never glared at him like _that_ before. And Peter did seem to favor Iron Man so that made progress with the suit being deployed to help, but when Bruce tried to draw blood, it was about fifty steps back. There is a dent in the wall from the suit being kicked back with Peter’s very present immense strength. 

Holding him down would only make it worse, and Steve did not even move to aid Bruce and Tony to try and get any sample for testing. The best they could do was draw blood from Natasha, but even then, she didn’t budge on it. Bruce only asked once. 

So hours of endless crying and screaming lead to the boy finally curled up in Steve’s side, breathing softly and fist tightly clenched in his shirt. He didn’t stay in the medical bed brought in, opting to stick close to Steve in the chair. It wouldn’t end well if anyone were to try and dislodge him - that was a mutual agreement. 

“Doesn’t-” Tony begins, standing and rubbing his eyes. “It doesn’t make any fucking sense!”

“Lower your voice.” Natasha commands softly yet firmly, eyes still closed. 

Bruce sighs as well, slipping off his glasses and looking at the holograph. Only Friday was able to get a full general body scan and even so, it didn’t yield the best results. “We can’t do anything without an MRI or blood test. And I’d rather not upset him...again.”

Tony scoffs. “Okay, but fucking Steve. Why him??”

Natasha’s head shoots up and she levels a cold glare at the engineer. “You wake him up and I’m going to remove your dick.”

Fighting wasn’t going to get them anywhere, Steve sighs, “Guys.” 

The motion causes Peter to shift, causing all four adults to freeze and snap their gaze towards him. It’s a few tense seconds as Peter readjusts his curl into Steve, settling back into a peaceful sleep and if he were being honest, Steve thought he was kind of adorable. When the threat of the teen waking up passes, all of them give a collective sigh of relief. 

“So, let’s just assume this is a de-aging beam.” Bruce thinks out loud but softer, scratching over his stubble. “The original tech was designed to reduce certain things to rust, or rapidly age them? So what if it’s the reverse way for humans? They- they just- Their minds rapidly age backward.” He emphasizes with his hands. “If it were trying to actually disintegrate people, it would’ve gone through his suit _and_ him.”

“Peter is a superhuman. His healing would’ve made sure that didn’t happen.” Steve says, except Tony is pointing an accusing finger at him.

“You don’t know shit about him, Rogers-”

“Tony.” Bruce hisses. “I’m with Nat on this way, you need to calm down. We can’t wake up Peter who has super hearing if you’ve forgotten.” 

“Someone’s fragile ego is hurt,” Natasha pipes up, opening her eyes just as three pairs of eyes turn to her. “He’s upset his favorite little spider doesn’t like him anymore.” 

Tony scoffs in disbelief, turning away with an eyeroll. “Okay, say that, we’ll see how you like it when you’re sucking on your own thumb.” He mutters, turning back to the displayed results as Bruce shoots a glare at him. But Steve does see her face blank real quick. 

“It won’t happen to me.”

“We don’t know that.” Bruce counters, apologetically.

“It won’t.” She enforces, daring anyone to disagree even if Steve himself could feel the weighing “no’s” on each of the scientists tongues. “He took the brunt of the beam, and I didn’t feel anything except him crashing into me.” 

There’s a rising tension in the room, and Steve readjusts his hold on Peter to better cover his ear with the other one pressed into his chest. “Okay, listen, we don’t know what really happened and it’s best to assume that it’s a possibility. Please, Nat.” 

Bucky’s words are ringing in his ear. She’d rather ghost them all than allow herself to be in such a position. 

Tony sighs, waving away a few extra holograms. “Get Clint down here.” And even Bruce can’t get a calming word in as Natasha sits up fast, like a snake ready to strike. 

“I’m sorry?”

“It’s not- Just for safety precautions!” 

Steve watches as masked emotions fly across her face, before she abruptly stands and leaves the workshop. It would be best to, they all know. There’s a few beats of silence and Bruce pinches the bridge of his nose as it’s Steve’s turn to glare at Tony. 

“Tony, you’re not helping.” The blond hisses. 

“Oh, you’re right. We probably need someone completely random to console her then when she breaks down. We’ll get Vision for it.”

“Are you out of your mind??”

“Are you out of yours?”

“Peter doesn’t belong to you!”

“I think I would know that, I'm not a _creep._ Does that mean he belongs to _you?_ ”

“It’s not my fault!” Steve says a little louder than he intended, because Peter is twisting in his arms, sniffling and brown wide eyes immediately looking up at him. His face twists into dismay, as Steve feels his heart drop. That was on him. And one quick look at Tony and Bruce show that the former was trying to evade any blame and the latter looked as if he’d like to be anywhere but here. Great. 

Adjusting his hold, Steve has to catch Peter’s attention, which diverts to the two others in the room. “Hey, Queens, I’m sorry I woke you up. It’s hard to sleep in here with loud adults, isn’t it?” 

Except Peter’s bottom lip is wobbling as he continues to watch Bruce and Tony, so Steve decides here was not the best place to stay. There was enough damage done and they were all tired. Tony does not seem to like when he stands up with the teen in arms, frowning. “Um, where is your stars and striped ass going?”

“To get the little sleep that we can.” Steve announces, settling Peter on his hip and heading out of the lab. Neither of the two stop him, and good thing too because there was no way he was stopping. They tried to do tests, and it didn’t do anything so why bother continuing beating a dead horse? And if Peter had the mind of a child, wouldn’t being sleep deprived make it even worse? 

That doesn’t mean he’s still not worried for their younger teammate. Though Peter has considerably relaxed not being around anyone else, Steve hopes his super healing is enough to fight against whatever was going on. Maybe it was temporary. And then there was still the matter of telling his aunt. 

Goodness, she was going to freak. Mostly at Tony, so Steve felt bad for him at least in that, but the engineer was acting like a grade A asshole. That’s what he was known for, but this was regarding _Peter,_ not who he was attached to. If anything, maybe Tony was hit because he was throwing the biggest tantrum ever. 

But it did shock him how strangely natural it felt. Not that he’s ever babied Peter, but the kid was small anyways and it wasn’t that hard to comfort him. Steve’s kind of dealt with children before. He’s seen a kid once pee himself from pure excitement at seeing him, and then said kid proceeded to cry from peeing himself...and then cry harder from crying. Except that was an actual child, and this was Peter Parker, a brilliant protégé of Tony Stark attending Midtown High who definitely was old enough to hold his own...clinging to Steve as if he’d drop him. 

Not to mention he’s sure Peter’s sticky powers are coming in handy. Does the teen even have control of his powers?

When Steve steps out of the elevator onto the main floor, he sees the kitchen dimly lit with Bucky closing the refrigerator and Wanda seated at the island. When her eyes land on Peter, her expression completely melts, and she coos. “Oh my goodness, Peter…”

Steve takes note of her red rimmed eyes. It’s actually the first he’s seen her out of her room since the incident, and she definitely did not sleep well. 

Wanda looks as if she wants to reach out to him, but does against, looking up at Steve and exhaling. “I’ll go.” She says, grabbing her cup of tea and sliding off the stool. 

“You don’t have to do that-” Steve reassures but Wanda shakes her head. 

“If there’s any sleep I can get between now and debrief, I’ll gladly do so.” She shoots Steve a small smile and Bucky a small nod before turning to head back up the stairs with the mug. Steve doesn’t even know what to say to his lover, as Peter idly swings his leg and tugs on Steve’s shirt. 

“Steeeeb,” He whines, looking at Bucky with a pout. 

The other only smiles softly, raising an eyebrow. “Are they done poking you with scary sticks and needles?” 

Peter blinks, before turning his head into Steve’s chest sheepishly, peeking out to glance at Bucky’s arm when the plates slightly shifted. Steve has to thank whatever god the kid isn’t crying so takes that as a win. “I think Tony is mad at me,” Steve admits, walking to the couch and setting Peter down on it. Hopefully it was soft enough to lure Peter to sleep again, because he didn’t think he would personally get any more sleep. 

“He muted his own A.I. What is he mad at you for?” Bucky snorts, preparing to fix some breakfast while Peter voiced his discomfort at being put down. 

Steve reaches down, smoothing over Peter’s disheveled hair. “It’s okay, Peter, I’m still here-”

Except that’s not good enough, because the teen’s eyes well with tears and he continues reaching up, gripping onto Steve’s shirt to pull himself up and it’s unexpected, but Steve catches the weight easily. Not that it was any problem in the first place, but maybe it was better for Tony not to be carrying around the Spider mutant all the time. 

Sighing, Steve accepts defeat, reaching to wipe the boy’s spilled tears and looking up at Bucky watching him with a fond, yet smug expression. “What? Don’t make any kind of joke, jerk.”

“It seems I’ve forgotten how motherly you can be.” He calls out, as Steve glares daggers at his turned back. 

“I’m not. I’m helping out my teammate.”

“Alright, doll. Do you want breakfast too? I’m just gonna make some for everyone but I know this morning will be different.”

Steve decides if he can’t put Peter down, he might as well rest himself on the couch, pulling a throw blanket off the back and pulling it over the both of them. There was no point going to Peter’s room, and his own room felt a bit too personal to have Peter sleep in. At least for now. “Yeah, I guess we’ll have a little something. Friday, could you dim the windows a bit?” The A.I does as requested without responding, and Steve does make himself comfy with Peter in his arms. He didn’t plan to sleep, but just at least keep Peter warm enough for him to get a little bit of shut eye. 

So he totally didn’t mean to doze off himself right after Peter fell asleep in his hold. 

  
  


He’s waking up some time later, hearing other voices carry out from the kitchen area. When he opens his eyes, he sees Vision staring down at them from behind the couch, looking quite confused. 

“Good morning to you too,” Steve mumbles, bringing on hand up to rub the sleep out of his eyes before realizing that Peter was drooling on his shirt. Well… at least the kid was deeper asleep this time. 

“My apologies, Captain.” Vision smoothly replies, tilting his head. “It seems I was unaware of this development.” 

“It was a long night.” Steve doesn’t want to risk waking Peter once more, but needed to pee, and he’d be quick. Making up his mind, Steve has to slowly ease himself from under Peter and make sure the kid is under the blanket and still fast asleep on the couch. He feels accomplished when the teen doesn’t even twitch from the new position. 

Vision is still curiously watching Peter, as if noticing the subtle changes in behavior, before Steve has to shake his head. “We’ll just have to leave him asleep for as long as we can. Please don’t disturb him.” He whispers to the synthezoid, who nods and turns off back towards the kitchen. 

Most of the Avengers sans Wanda and Natasha are occupying it with each to their own. Most of breakfast is finished from the looks of it, but Steve isn’t ready to mingle yet. “Hey Vision?” Steve calls out softly. The mentioned turns in question, and Steve has to sigh. “Please make sure they keep it down in there, and if Peter wakes up before I get back...make sure no one approaches him.” When Vision nods in understanding, Steve turns off down the hall in order for the bathroom. 

He’s not sure how Fury will react to the current changes. Maybe he’d blow a fuse. Maybe he’d worry most about how his favorite assassin would be affected. 

As Steve does his business, he can’t help but ask out to Friday when washing his hands. “Hey, Friday, is Nat still sleeping?”

_‘No, Captain Rogers.’_

Without Peter there to hear, she must know it’s okay to speak freely albeit quieter. Steve frowns. “Where is she? Gym?”

‘ _I am not allowed to say. Miss Romanoff’s location within the Tower is not to be disclosed unless in the case of emergencies or she has turned off private mode.’_

It made sense, but Steve would feel better if at least someone has seen her recently. “But can you confirm she’s been in contact with someone in the last hour?” 

Friday’s response is delayed, but eventually she does confirm with a single ‘ _Yes.’_

Yet, it doesn’t calm Steve nerves as he exits the bathroom. Walking towards the kitchen, Steve makes a beeline to Clint, because he knows if it was anyone, it had to be him. “Hey Clint, have you seen Nat recently?”

The archer looks away from Sam, who he had been in conversation with. Confused, he pauses with thought before shaking his head. “No? I saw her yesterday but uh…”

Except Steve didn’t like that. He feels tense, and on edge now. “Has no one seen Nat recently?” That seems to quiet the room, as all eyes land on him. It’s not helping at all, and Steve feels frustrated turning to Tony with a glare. “This is your fault, if you hadn’t opened your big mouth-”

Tony, holding his coffee cup and surprised such annoyance was directed to him, holds up a hand in defense. “What?! Calm down, Capsicle. What happened?”

“Yeah, I agree, what happened?” Bucky asks, but more concerned for Steve’s sudden outburst than he is the situation.

“Did I miss something?” Sam mumbles, but Steve ignores it all. 

“Get Friday to reveal Natasha’s location.” Steve uses his Captain voice as he nears Tony, nearly jabbing a finger into his chest. “Now.”

Tony looks mildly offended at being commanded, before anger sets over his features. “Oh, so you’ve gotten a big head now? Who the fuck do you think you’re talking to?!”

“This is not the time for that!”

“Stevie,” Bucky rushes to whisper, tilting his head over to the couch where Vision is currently placing noise cancelling headphones over the boy’s ears the best he could. Steve didn’t know where this anger had come from but he just felt...out of place. “Tony, maybe you should-”

Tony turns his glare to Bucky. “You stay out of this, American boy toy!”

And that seems to rile up the floor more, as Sam and Clint try to intervene and Bruce pointedly moves to leave the floor. Because it was all so fast and everything was going up in flames. Thor looked more confused than concerned and just sat quietly in the corner, munching on a poptart. 

A dramatic groan interrupts them all, as Loki appears at the top of the stairs. “You all sound like squabbling children. If I knew it would be this bad, I would’ve taken the solidarity of the Asgardian cell. The Widow left a couple of hours ago while you were peacefully sleeping, Captain.” 

Steve feels a cold chill wash over him. “What?”

“Packed a bag, and simply left.” Loki explains as he descends the stairs, looking quite annoyed at all of them. “She’s smart, of course she would find ways to keep the voice’s silence and leave you all to bicker like idiots. And for what reason, I might ask?”

“Tony is being a jealous, stubborn idiot.” Bucky simply says, as Tony wants to protest if it weren’t for Vision simply warning them all to keep it down with a simple look. 

This was hopeless. Steve groans and rubs his face, trying to dispel the remaining annoyance he felt in his chest. Thankfully, Vision was still keeping guard over Peter and he didn’t have to worry about that for a while. “Let’s just- Debrief is in how long?”

It’s silent for a while, before Sam clears his throat. “An hour. You were asleep since seven and it's nine now.” 

“Great. So we’ve got one compromised Spider and the other is possibly compromised and current M.I.A.” Tony sighs, turning away and throwing back his coffee. 

“Compromised??” Clint repeats, adjusting his hearing aid. 

Thor shifts in his seat. “Brother, do you know where she went?”

“No,” Loki answers. “I believe she knew I was there, because she seemed to look in my direction even though I was cloaked before she left.” He shrugs, reaching over to steal a piece of bacon off Thor’s abandoned plate. “Good luck finding her, I won’t be bothered.”

Steve can’t panic. He simply can’t. There are a few possible options open but everything is just tuning out as Tony begins ordering Friday to override any privacy protocols and search for Natasha, checking the last Tower footage and any road cams. Clint is confused obviously, and demanding to know what was going on. And Steve… he just felt stuck.

If Nat were to be in the same position as Peter, away from them, that would mean she could possibly be the target of enemies. She’s swift and obviously can take care of herself, but Peter is reduced to the age of four and his memory seems to be affected as well. That’s twelve years taken off his life, which would possibly mean twelve years taken off Nat’s memory. Which means…

“Tony.” Steve whispers, turning slowly despite Bucky placing a comforting hand on his shoulder. The billionaire surprisingly turns to him, his expression softer than before but still with a hint of before. “We can’t...we can’t go after Natasha.” 

“And why not?” He asks, as Steve slowly shakes his head. 

“She’s not Natasha anymore. If the thing that happened with Peter happens to her...we’re not dealing with a child, we’re dealing with…”

It hangs over them like a dark cloud, and even Vision has to look up in semi confusion to the atmosphere change. 

Sure Natasha could hide if she wanted. She could completely go off radar. But besides Bucky, they were possibly dealing with the world’s deadliest assassin: The Black Widow.

And she wouldn’t remember any of them.

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



End file.
